title: CAST-ChIP maps cell-type-specific chromatin states in the Drosophila central nervous system.
abstract: Chromatin organization and gene activity are responsive to developmental and environmental cues. Although many genes are transcribed throughout development and across cell types, much of gene regulation is highly cell-type specific. To readily track chromatin features at the resolution of cell types within complex tissues, we developed and validated chromatin affinity purification from specific cell types by chromatin immunoprecipitation (CAST-ChIP), a broadly applicable biochemical procedure. RNA polymerase II (Pol II) CAST-ChIP identifies ~1,500 neuronal and glia-specific genes in differentiated cells within the adult Drosophila brain. In contrast, the histone H2A.Z is distributed similarly across cell types and throughout development, marking cell-type-invariant Pol II-bound regions. Our study identifies H2A.Z as an active chromatin signature that is refractory to changes across cell fates. Thus, CAST-ChIP powerfully identifies cell-type-specific as well as cell-type-invariant chromatin states, enabling the systematic dissection of chromatin structure and gene regulation within complex tissues such as the brain.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiological Chemistry, Butenandt Institute and LMU Biomedical Center, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Butenandtstrasse 5, 81377 Munich, Germany; European Molecular Biology Laboratory International PhD Program, Meyerhofstrasse 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Tamás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schauer
authors.forename: Petra C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Schwalie
authors.forename: Ava
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Handley
authors.forename: Carla E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Margulies
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Flicek
authors.forename: Andreas G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Ladurner
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D002843:Chromatin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D047369:Chromatin Immunoprecipitation / Q000379:methods; D004330:Drosophila; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study
chemical_list: D002843:Chromatin; D029721:Drosophila Proteins